Week 3

Being in Rio de Janeiro has been a great experience. This week I visited 5 different malls to get a feel for the industry. Every mall I visited is looking for ways to improve the experience it provides for its customers. It was very interesting to see how each mall catered to the different classes of people in the region. Plaza Niteroi was, for me, the most interesting experience. Each floor of the mall was strategically created for a specific class of people. On the first floor, local tenants that provided inexpensive goods and services were tightly packed together. The second floor was spread out and focused on the B class of customers. The most premier and expensive stores and restaurants were on the top floor. It was very interesting to move from floor to floor and see how different the shopping experiences could be depending on your shopping preferences.

Aside from work, I was able to go to a soccer match where two big rival teams played in the most famous Brazilian stadium, Maracana. This stadium holds the record for the greatest attendance for a sporting event at 200,000 people. The rivalry is so intense that I had to take off my jersey while walking down the street due to the fact that it could cause a confrontation with fans from the other team. The fans here are very passionate about soccer and their teams.

I was able to eat at a Brazilian Barbeque where I tried some exotic foods. I told everyone in the office that I was willing to try anything once, so they made sure I ate a variety of food. I tried Caviar, raw beef, and chicken heart. I also tried local drinks such as Guarana, which is made from the Guarana fruit found in Brazil.

Today, I am in Sao Paulo getting ready for a meeting with Gafisa, Brazil’s leading home builder. I hope to get insight relating to emerging middle class and its relationship to homebuilding. My main goal is to find out how Gafisa is positioning itself for a rising middle class by getting information as to its strategies and projections for future homeowners. Throughout this week I will be visiting more properties from BR Malls and visiting with Itau, a large private bank in Brazil. My goal is to get some depth on the financial status of the Brazilian consumer and relate that to different aspects of the real estate market. This week is critical for the project and should be a great learning experience.